China Hopes for Japan's 'Timely, Accurate' Info on Radioactive Leaks

China said on Tuesday that it hoped Japan could provide "timely, accurate and comprehensive" information about radioactive leaks from a quake-hit nuclear power plant.

At a regular press briefing in Beijing, Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Jiang Yu said this information would be important for relevant countries in assessing the situation.

"China views the radioactive leaks from Japan's nuclear power plant in Fukushima as a global issue, and attaches great importance to the accident," Jiang said.

In view of the gravity and uncertainty of the situation, China's General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine had requested regional agencies to regularly conduct port surveillance, including testing foods imported from Japan to ensure food safety, Jiang said.

National Nuclear Emergency Coordination Committee had instructed relevant departments to continuously monitor radiation levels in China's terrestrial areas and the water off the Chinese coast.

"These tests have not yet found any abnormal conditions," Jiang said.

She added that China had full-fledged emergency plans for nuclear accidents, and would respond according to these plans should the situation further develop.

Cooling systems of the Fukushima No.1 Nuclear Power Plant, about 220 km northeast of Tokyo, was crippled by a 9.0-magnitude earthquake and ensuing tsunami on March 11, which led to partial meltdowns of some of the reactors' cores and radioactive leaks.

The International Atomic Energy Agency officials said Monday that levels of radiation up to 1,600 times higher than normal were detected in an area 20 kilometers away from the troubled nuclear plant.